The $30 million price of national security

Bolivia's President Rodrigo Paz has signed legislation that could enable his administration to declare a state of emergency , granting the military authority to address ongoing protests and approximately 90 roadblocks across the country .

The move follows statements from US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, who linked the demonstrations to 'narcoterrorism,' a top priority for the Trump administration.

Paz adopted the term in his Monday statement, asserting that national security is compromised when narco-terrorism and certain actors' priorities diverge from the nation's interests .

However, local journalist Joseph Bouchard highlighted that Paz offered no evidence connecting the roadblocks, marches in cities like La Paz and El Alto, or the broader protest movement to drug trafficking or narco-terrorist activities.

Reversing safeguards, reversing rights

The new law reverses previous strict limitations on declaring a state of emergency, which had ensured certain rights could not be suspended and held the president criminally liable for overstepping.

This shift has drawn criticism amid widespread unrest triggered by Paz's decision to end a fuel subsidy after taking office last November, a policy change deeply affecting working people.

Some protest groups are calling for Paz's resignation.

What auditors flagged in the May filing

Government reports indicate that from May 1 to June 2, ten deaths are attributed to the blockades, 37 people were injured, and 365 arrests were made.

Authorities stated that seven of the deaths resulted from blocked medical access but remain under investigation .

Hegseth warned that Bolivia 'must not allow itself to fall prey to the old status quo of narco-terrorist dominance in the region.'

In response, Paz thanked Hegseth for his 'support for democracy' before signing the emergency law.

Bouchard expresed skepticism, stating, 'I really don't know how anyone could take any of this seriously,' after considering the Trump administration's history in Bolivia and Latin America.

Broader context: A familiar pattern from the 2019 crash

The move to revoke safeguards on emergency powers echoes a similar pattern seen in 2019 , when the Trump administration used similar language to justify a military crackdown on protests in Latin America .

The use of 'narcoterrorism' as a justification for military action has been widely criticized by human rights groups and experts, who argue that it is a thinly veiled attempt to justify repression and undermine democratic institutions .

The Trump administration's history in Bolivia and Latin America has been marked by a series of controversies, including the 2019 coup in Venezuela and the 2020 coup in Bolivia.

Headlines Orbit's take: This move by President Paz is a worrying sign of the erosion of democratic institutions in Bolivia and a potential precursor to further repression.

Our take: The use of 'narcoterrorism' as a justification for military action is a thinly veiled attempt to justify repression and undermine democratic institutions.

We will be closely watching the situation in Bolivia and providing updates as more information becomes available.